


like real people do

by orphan_account



Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Eventual Smut, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Lando is a disaster, Light Angst, M/M, Pining, Poor use of the Spanish language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:21:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21852925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: George lets out a loud cackle.“Why the hell did you tell your mum Carlos was your boyfriend?” He asks, wiping away tears.“I panicked!” Lando snaps from between his fingers. “She just assumed it was him and I thought it would keep her from going on about my cousin’s bloody friend. God, what the hell am I going to do?”“You’re going to have to ask Carlos to pretend to be your boyfriend.” George shrugs, smirking. “Maybe you can offer him some money, Pretty Woman style.”
Relationships: Dilara Sanlik/Max Verstappen, Lando Norris/Carlos Sainz Jr
Comments: 18
Kudos: 236
Collections: Motorsport Secret Santa 2019





	like real people do

**Author's Note:**

> to my darling ttired. i have told you before, you are the picasso, the van gogh of writers to me, while i am just some kid with a crayon trying to draw something that could be a dog or a bird, who knows. your writing is incredible, inspiring and just beautiful, and i genuinely was so worried about this because you deserve much better than someone like me can give you. i don't know if you're going to like this and i have prayed that you do because you deserve something you like for all the beautiful things you have given me. i hope that this somehow is a little bit of the dream team you wanted vs a little bit of my own love. i don't know if this is good enough, i just pray that you enjoy even bits of this crackpile of nonsense because you are such a wonderful person and friend and you deserve it so.
> 
> to s, my vale and the laughter in my life, and m, my dani and my voice of reason, i love you both more than anything. this could not have been finished without your love and kindness.
> 
> as per usual, please don't share with anyone in this, it's not real, please don't get me sued (i am poor and need the money to afford a house in the next 20 years so my parents can enjoy their life lol) etc etc. oh and to avoid any confusion - lando's mum and sister are both called cisca (i know, i was confused af) so there may be some overlap, but hopefully you will both get who i mean.
> 
> title comes from like real people by hozier which is a bomb dot com song. anyway, enjoy my lovelies, enjoy!

It’s late on Saturday morning when Lando’s mum calls him. He and George are sat in the living room of their student flat, George pretending to write an essay while Lando can see him actually scrolling through Twitter on his phone, and Lando watching some old episodes of Friends. The flat is fairly quiet without Alex, who’s currently out on some weird escape room date with Lily and a couple of her friends.

“My sunshine,” His mum sounds much more awake than Lando feels. “How have you been?”

Lando makes an impartial sort of noise. “Alright, just handed in an essay yesterday, so I’ve got a bit of a break for a while.”

“I’m sure you’ll have done fine.” Cisca says reassuringly. Lando can’t say he feels that confident about it, but he’d had Max help him out with the mathematical parts (along with quite a bit of his terrible grammar), so hopefully it was okay. “I was ringing up to ask if you were still going to come to Jessie and Dom’s wedding next weekend.”

He’d forgotten about his cousin’s wedding, crap.

“Um,” Lando mouths the words “do we have anything next weekend?” to George, who gives him a thumbs down. “Sure, I’ll come. I don’t have any lectures on Friday, so I can come up for the rehearsal.”

“Excellent.” His mum says, sounding delighted. “Do you remember that boy that Dom was friends with? The one who liked you? He’s going to be there.”

Lando groans. “Mum, I don’t want to go out with Dom’s friend.”

“Why not?” Cisca asks. “He’s very handsome and polite, and I worry about you, Lando, being all lonely up there on your own.”

“I’m not lonely, mum, I’ve got loads of friends.” Lando says indignantly. “Anyway, I forgot to say, I’ve already got a boyfriend.”

The words leave his mouth without his permission. George drops his phone and Lando makes a desperate gesture at him as though to say “what else could I say?”.

His mum gasps. “Oh, Lando, darling, that’s _wonderful_.”

“Yeah, it’s great,” Lando starts, but his mum cuts him off.

“It must be that Carlos, the one you’re always telling me about.” Cisca carries on. Lando nearly drops the phone this time, because _what the actual fuck_? Okay, so ever since Max had introduced them to Carlos, he and Lando had spent quite a lot of time together and maybe Lando did talk about him a little bit more than normal, but surely his mum hadn’t thought they were dating? They had a lot in common, sure, and Lando may have the teeniest, tiniest crush on the Spaniard, but he certainly hadn’t revealed that to his mum. “I knew you liked him from the way you talked about him, but I didn’t like to say anything. I’m just so happy for you.”

“Um, yeah, it’s Carlos.” Lando says weakly, flipping George the finger as his friend starts to silently cry with laughter at Lando’s clear discomfort. “So, we don’t need to worry about Dom’s friend.

“You’ll be bringing Carlos to the wedding I hope.” His mum doesn’t sound like there’s any room for debate there and this is an issue Lando didn’t forsee. To be fair, this whole conversation is an issue he didn’t forsee, but here he is.

“He’ll be busy, mum, he works full time, so I don’t think he’ll be able to.”

“Nonsense.” Cisca says firmly. “He can take a day off, we’re coming back on Sunday. Surely he wants to meet your family?”

“Maybe I don’t want him to meet them.” Lando mutters, trying to ignore the way George is actually clutching his sides as he tries not to laugh out loud. “We haven’t been going out that long, it might be too soon.”

“Lando Norris, you ask your boyfriend to come to this wedding or there will be trouble.” Great, she’s using full names now. “Oh, your brother’s calling me, I’ll have to go. I’ll get Oli to text you the times for the rehearsal so you know when to get there. Love you!”

“Love you too.” Lando hangs up and throws his phone down on the sofa, putting his head in his hands. “Fuck, fuck, _fuck_!”

George lets out a loud cackle.

“Why the hell did you tell your mum Carlos was your boyfriend?” He asks, wiping away tears.

“I panicked!” Lando snaps from between his fingers. “She just assumed it was him and I thought it would keep her from going on about my cousin’s bloody friend. God, what the hell am I going to do?”

“You’re going to have to ask Carlos to pretend to be your boyfriend.” George shrugs, smirking. “Maybe you can offer him some money, Pretty Woman style.”

Lando ignores his dickhead of a friend and picks up his phone to find a text from Max telling him to come to the library so they can go over some seminar work and another from Carlos asking if he wants to come over later on and play FIFA.

God, he is so screwed.

“I’m going to meet Max.” Lando tells George, standing up. “And then I’m either going to have to ask Carlos to pretend to be my boyfriend or just kill myself before the day so I don’t have to tell my mum I lied.”

George snorts. “Can I come to this wedding? Please?”

“No.”

+

Max and Dilara are sat at one of the many booths in the library, pouring over a few sheets of paper on the table in front of them.

“Hey,” Lando greets the pair, sitting down opposite them. “How hard is it?”

Max shrugs. “It’s not too bad, it’s just going into more detail about thermodynamics in vehicles.”

That sounds pretty bad to Lando, but he just pulls one of the sheets they’ve printed off over to his side of the table and tries to make sense of it. It takes him about ten seconds to realise that his head is not in it at all, because the only thing he can think about is how the hell he’s going to ask Carlos to pretend to be his boyfriend.

“Max, you’ve known Carlos since forever, right?” Lando asks, trying to sound casual about it. 

“I mean, I guess so.” Max says, frowning. “Our dads know each other, so we grew up together. Why?”

Lando grimaces. “I need him to come to my cousin’s wedding with me.”

“Like a date?” Max asks, his lips curling upwards. “You’re finally going to ask him out?”

Why?

Why does everyone seem to think he has a thing for Carlos?

Okay, so Lando might have a bit of a thing for him, but surely he’s not that obvious about it? At least he bloody hopes he isn’t.

“I told my mum that we were dating so she wouldn’t make me go out with my cousin’s mate and now she wants me to invite him to the wedding.” Lando says all at once, hoping that saying it quickly will make it less painful, like ripping off a plaster. 

It doesn’t.

Max bursts out laughing after a second of stunned silence, while Dilara gives him a rather pitying look, biting her lip as though she too is trying not to laugh.

“Oh, Lando.” She says, patting him on the arm. “You are _such_ a disaster sometimes.”

Lando unfortunately has to agree that she has a point.

“I can’t believe you told your mum that you’re dating Carlos and that she fell for it,” Max manages to choke out through his laughter. “Has she ever seen a picture of him?”

It takes Lando a moment to realise what Max means.

“Oi,” Lando says, offended. “I’m not that ugly.”

Max eyes him up and down. “Yeah, but you’re not Carlos handsome either.”

That is true. His family are probably going to think he’s dragged Carlos there under threat of blackmail or something on Friday when they turn up. There’s no way that someone like Carlos would ever date someone like him.

“Don’t be mean,” Dilara frowns, hitting Max lightly on the arm. “Anyone would be lucky to have you, Lando.”

Max snorts quietly.

“What do you think I should say to him?” Lando asks. “What if he says no?”

“Nah, he won’t.” Max says confidently. “Carlos is way too nice, he’ll say yes for sure. Just tell him what you told us, he’ll probably find it hilarious.”

At least someone can, because Lando certainly doesn’t right now.

“Come on then,” Dilara sighs, perhaps sensing Lando’s discomfort. “We best get this over with else Rosberg will make us look like idiots.”

“Lando always looks like an idiot.” Max grins, kicking him under the table. “That’s why Rosberg loves him, because he’s always asking questions and making him seem really smart. Maybe you could ask him to be your date instead?”

Lando flips him the bird and kicks him back.

+

Carlos’ apartment is in the heart of London, and much nicer than Lando’s own student flat. Admittedly, Carlos essentially manages the London branch of his father’s business, while Lando is living off Sainsbury’s basic food to make his shitty student loan last, so Lando supposes that that probably explains it.

“Cabrón,” Carlos greets him cheerfully, ushering Lando inside. “I have already set Fifa up for us, so prepare to be beaten.”

“Dream on, Chili,” Lando tells the Spaniard, racing him towards the sofa. “You’re about to see a Norris masterclass.”

After a few rounds where there is much cheating, elbowing one another aside or trying to knock the controller out of one another’s hands, it’s unfortunately more of a disasterclass for Lando, who manages to lose every game.

“Oh, cabrón,” Carlos pats him mockingly on the head. “You really are terrible at this game.”

Lando pouts. “I wasn’t that bad, I almost beat you the last match!”

“6-3 is not almost winning. I even let you score a free goal and you still lose, you are just rubbish.”

They bicker back and forth for a while, the bickering ending up in them wrestling one another on the floor and Lando nearly wetting himself laughing. He finds himself lying on the floor next to Carlos, trying to get their breath back, and before he can stop himself, the words leave his mouth.

“I need a favour.”

Carlos turns to look at him. “What is it?”

“Um, well,” Lando grimaces, unable to help it. There’s only two ways this can go, and Lando isn’t quite sure which way he would like it to be. “I need you to come to my cousin’s wedding with me.”

“You say this like is a bad thing.” Carlos grins, poking him in the ribs. “Why do you look so worried?”

Lando swallows. “I sort of told my mum we were dating, so I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend.”

Carlos stares at him, eyes wide.

“I know, I know!” Lando moans, hiding his face in his hands. “It’s just, she was trying to set me up with one of my cousin’s friends and I panicked and told her I was dating someone and you were the first person I could think of that was single and now she wants you to come to the wedding to meet my family and I know that it’s a lot to ask but if you don’t, I’m going to have to either go alone or throw myself off the top of the student union so I don’t have to go.”

Lando takes a deep breath as he ends his speech, Carlos remaining silent. Lando finally dares to take a peek through his fingers and finds Carlos’ chest heaving with silent laughter.

“Fuck you,” Lando says, hitting him on the arm as Carlos rests his head back against the carpet, laughing hard now. Internally, he’s completely relieved that Carlos hasn’t kicked him out or something worse. “I panicked!”

He isn’t about to tell Carlos that his mum already thought they were dating, he’s keeping that bit to himself.

“You do make me laugh.” Carlos tells him, calming down. “You should not lie to your mama, though. What will happen when we break up?”

Lando lets out a little surprised snort of laughter. “You mean when I leave you for another handsome Spaniard?”

“No one in Spain is more handsome than me, cabrón.” Carlos winks, and Lando has to privately agree. “But, yes, okay. I shall come with you.”

Lando blinks. “Really?”

“Eh, is a weekend away.” Carlos shrugs. “And besides, I would like to meet your family. They can tell me embarrassing stories about you.”

Lando hadn’t thought about that. Crap.

“We’ll need to drive down to Bristol on Friday.” Lando tells him. “Can you get Friday off?”

Carlos nods. “Of course, anything for my _boyfriend_.”

He winks and Lando feels himself go red and lets out a slightly manic sounding giggle.

“Asshole.”

“Hey, you should no talk to me like that.” Carlos warns, reaching over and tickling his sides, Lando jerking as he does. “You are meant to love me, you have to be more romantic.”

“Fine,” Lando tries to squirm out of Carlos’ reach. “You beautiful asshole.”

“That is much better.”

The rest of the evening is much more comfortable than Lando anticipated it being and he’s relieved that Carlos seems to find the whole pretending to be boyfriends thing more funny than anything else. He falls asleep on Carlos’ sofa, waking up in the morning to find Carlos singing (badly) along to Queen and making them both torrejas.

“Do not worry about the wedding.” Carlos tells him firmly as Lando goes to leave. Carlos walks him to the door, looking unusually serious. “I promise, I will do everything to make sure it goes okay. Your parents are gonna love me.”

Lando doesn’t doubt that.

“Okay.” Lando says trying to smile properly. He can’t help but to think that this whole thing is going to end up blowing up in his face. “I’ll try.”

Carlos grins. “Good.”

And then, he leans in and does something that he’s never done before in all the time they’ve been hanging out, and kisses Lando on the cheek.

“I will call on Thursday so we can go over details.” Carlos says, Lando trying to prevent the pink that is undoubtedly colouring his cheeks right now as well as desperately attempting to make his brain start working again.

“Yeah, sounds good.” Lando manages to get out, giving Carlos what is a probably insane looking grin and waving as he walks away.

The place where Carlos kisses him burns and Lando is certain now that that this weekend is going to be an unmitigated disaster.

+

“Are you sure we can’t come?” Alex asks, lounging out on the sofa with his feet in George’s lap. “We’ll pay you.”

“No.” Lando says flatly, checking for the fifth time to make sure he’s packed everything he needs. “Fuck off.”

George and Alex exchange a look.

“Sound a bit tetchy there, Lando.” George says, smirking. “What’s crawled up your ass?”

“What do you think?” Lando snaps. “I’ve got to spend the weekend pretending Carlos is my boyfriend.”

George snorts. “Sounds like your idea of a dream weekend to me.”

Lando’s actual idea of a dream weekend is spending the weekend with Carlos as his actual, real life boyfriend, but he isn’t about to say that.

Before Lando can retort, there’s the sound of a car horn from outside and George and Alex both make irritating, high pitched “_oooh_” sounds.

“Your prince charming awaits.” Alex says, elbowing George in the ribs. “Our Lando is growing up, George.”

George gives a fake, long suffering sigh. “Soon he’ll be traipsing off to Spain with his handsome lover, forgetting about his poor old friends who have been with him through his many mornings of throwing up after too many jägerbombs.”

Lando glares at them.

“I hate both of you.”

“We love you too!” George calls as Lando walks towards the door of their flat. “Keep us updated. We want to know how badly it goes!”

Carlos is waiting for him in a very sleek, black McLaren that Lando can only dream of affording. Lando throws his bag into the boot before sliding into the passenger side of the car.

“You’ve gone all out to impress, haven’t you?” Lando jokes. It’s only then that he looks properly at Carlos and his stomach does a stupid little sumersault, because Carlos looks _ good _. He’s shaved so that his stubble is neat and frames his face in a way that Lando could never pull off, he’s clearly styled his hair more than usual and he’s dressed in a smart shirt and jeans. “Why do you look so smart?”

Carlos shoots him a nervous look. “Is it too much? I just wanted to give a good impression to your parents, did not want them to think I am not taking this seriously.”

In that moment, Lando realises that he can never bring another man home to his parents again, because no one is going to compare to Carlos and now he’s going to have to die alone rather than try and find someone better because they definitely don’t exist.

“No, no, it’s fine.” Lando assures him, patting his arm. “You look very smart. A proper gentleman.”

Carlos winks. “I told you, I will be the best pretend boyfriend you shall ever have.”

The drive itself is great, the pair of them sing and dance along to every stupid song that Lando can find on his phone, headbopping a little to violently to be safe, but neither of them care. By the time they’re pulling up to Preston Mill, Lando’s nerves have almost vanished and he’s laughed harder than he has in weeks. 

However, when he spots his parents and sisters standing around on the other side of the car park, it’s like a weight settles heavily in his stomach and the nerves are back in full force. Carlos follows his line of vision and bites his lip.

“Those are your family?” Carlos asks, and Lando nods. “They look very nice.”

Lando doesn’t respond to that. He thinks he might be sick if he tries.

“Do you want to go and see them?” Carlos’ hand comes to rest on his knee and Lando feels the heat from it seep through his jeans.

“Yeah.” Lando says weakly. A sudden realisation hits him and he halts. “Oh god, Carlos.”

“What?” Carlos asks warily. “Are you okay?”

“We’re going to have to kiss.” Lando croaks out. “They’ll expect us to.”

Carlos frowns. “Does the thought of kissing me disgust you that much?”

“No, it’s not you, it’s just,” Lando stutters out, gesticulating wildly. “I dunno, I didn’t really think about it and now we’re here, I’m just worried that they’ll realise and I’ll look like a total idiot and -"

Carlos cups a hand to Lando’s jaw, leans over the console and kisses him. It’s brief and chaste, but Lando nearly swallows his tongue in surprise. Carlos pulls back smiling softly.

“There. Now we have practised, you will not be so nervous, no?”

Before Lando can respond, Carlos opens the door of the car and hops out to get their bags. Lando sits there in complete shock for a moment, before realising that his mum has spotted him and is making her way over and rushes to get out the car to meet him.

“Lando, my darling,” Cisca greets him, pressing a kiss to both his cheeks. “How are you? You looks thin.”

Lando rolls his eyes, secretly comforted by her concern. “I’m fine mum, you say that every time.”

Carlos comes out from behind the car at that moment and his eyes widen fractionally at the sight of Lando’s mum, but he composes himself very quickly.

“Um, mum, this is Carlos.” Lando says pointlessly because Cisca has already pushed past him to greet the Spaniard.

Carlos puts the bag on the floor, reaching out and taking his mother’s hand and pressing a kiss to the back of it.

“Señora,” He says politely. “Is lovely to meet you, thank you so much for inviting me.”

Cisca looks absolutely flattered. “Thank you for coming. I hope Lando has been treating you well, he’s used to getting away with too much.”

“_Mum _,” Lando whines. “Don’t be embarrassing.”

“He is a very good boyfriend.” Carlos smiles. “He is a bit crazy, but is the way I like him.”

Lando is going to die, he can just tell. This weekend is going to actually kill him.

“Come inside, everyone is so excited to meet you.” Cisca takes Carlos’ arm and starts to guide him towards the building. “Lando, you can get the bags, can’t you?”

By the time Lando manages to carry their bags inside, his father and siblings all seem to have fallen in love with Carlos and are laughing away with him. Both Flo and Cisca both keep casting him rather appraising glances that Lando doesn’t like one bit, while Adam seems fairly impressed with Carlos, something he hasn’t been with many of Lando’s past choices of boyfriend.

“Lando isn’t paying you to be here, is he?” Oli asks, winking as Lando glares at him. “We thought you were made up or something, you sounded too good to go out with him.”

Carlos frowns. “I am real and, no, is not paying me. Your brother an amazing boyfriend, although, he did not want for me to be here. He says you will tell me embarrassing stories.”

Adam and Oli exchange a look that Lando doesn’t like at all.

Adam throws an arm around Carlo’s shoulder. “Carlos, my boy, let me tell you about the time Lando tried to sneak back in when he was 16 and ended up breaking his leg.”

“_Dad _.”

His dad leads Carlos away towards the reception before Lando can stop him, Oli following along, undoubtedly to make sure Adam includes all the horribly humiliating details that will have Carlos mocking Lando for years to come.

“I like him.” His mum says decidedly. “He’s a very nice boy and he clearly adores you.”

Lando turns to her. “Um, thanks. I like him too.”

“We could tell.” Flo says knowingly. “You went all pink.”

Lando shoves her shoulder. “Go away.”

“Lando and Carlos sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g.” Ciscsa and Flo sing together and Lando could happily die then and there. He’s never bringing another boyfriend, real or fake, around his family again.

When he finally manages to pull Carlos away from his father and brother so that they can go up to their room comes Lando’s next problem. The room is nice, all traditional British country hotel style white and green furnishing, but the issue isn’t with the decor; it’s with the bed, or more importantly the fact that there’s only _ one _. 

“Um,” Lando says awkwardly. “I didn’t realise-”

“Is fine.” Carlos puts their bags down at the end of it. “It would be strange if you ask for two beds when we are supposed to be dating. As long as you no kick in the night, will be okay.”

He’s certainly more optimistic than Lando is.

“What time is the rehearsal dinner?” Carlos asks, apparently unaware of Lando’s internal struggle. Pretending to date Carlos is one thing, sharing a bed with him is another. “I do not think your papa said.”

“It’s half six, I think.” Lando opens up the wardrobe. “I need to get changed and stuff so my parents aren’t embarrassed by me.”

“I think is a bit late for that, cabrón.”

“Dickhead.”

+

The reception dinner goes well enough. Dom and Jessie both look radiantly happy, laughing easily with one another clearly very much in love. Lando, however, spends a lot of the meal trying to ignore the way Carlos keeps touching him; he puts a hand on his leg, arm around his shoulder, hand over his. As far as being a fake boyfriend is going, he’s doing an excellent job, because his whole family seem to be delighted for him, but Lando can’t help the butterflies that flutter in his stomach whenever Carlos touches him.

“Lando,” A voice from behind him has Lando nearly drop his fork. He turns to find Grandma Norris looking down at him with a warm smile on her face. “I haven’t seen you today, I’ve missed you.”

“Grandma,” Lando greets her, jumping up to give her a hug. “It’s so nice to see you.”

She looks at Carlos, who looks terrified now. He can clearly tell who the matriarch of the family is.

“And who is this young man?” Grandma Norris asks, raising an eyebrow.

“This is Carlos,” Lando tells her. “He’s, um, my boyfriend.”

Carlos stands immediately, doing as he did to Lando’s mother and pressing a kiss to the back of her hand. “Señora, is an honour to be here amongst your wonderful family.”

Grandma Norris surveys him for a moment, looks back at Lando, and then back at Carlos.

“Is Lando paying you to be here?” She asks, the atmosphere immediately changing to one of amusement. Both Oli and Adam laugh, Lando frowning. Why did everyone keep asking that? Surely Carlos wasn’t _ that _far out of his league. “I’m serious! All of his other boyfriends had no manners whatsoever, I’d given up on him finding anyone half decent.”

Good old Grandma Norris, always there to ensure Lando’s mistakes were noted.

“I assure you, señora, your grandson is in safe hands.” Carlos smiles warmly. “I will do my best to make sure he learns some manners too.”

Thankfully, the rest of the evening is not spent pointing out all of Lando’s many flaws, although his grandmother does drag Carlos off to be interrogated by his great aunts, so Lando expects that some mention of his previous boyfriends was once again brought up.

By time they’re laying in bed, Lando carefully making sure that they have a side each, Lando is absolutely exhausted.

“I like your family.” Carlos says quietly into the darkness. “They are very kind people, your Grandma is especially so.”

Lando snorts softly. “She just liked you because you called her señora.”

“Always wins over the ladies.” Lando can hear the grin in his voice. “Was I okay today? I try to act like a boyfriend.”

“You were brilliant.” Lando says honestly, because his whole family was definitely charmed by Carlos and they didn’t seem to think there was a possibility they weren’t dating. “Seriously, Carlos, you’re the best.”

“You are not too bad yourself, cabrón.” Carlos yawns loudly. “I think is time for bed, the wedding is early tomorrow, no?”

“We need to be downstairs for 9 o’clock.” Lando whispers, reaching out and patting Carlos on the hand. “Night, Chili.”

Carlos squeezes his fingers. 

“Night, Lando.”

+

In the morning, Lando wakes to find himself half sprawled over Carlos, their legs tangled together and Carlos’ hand resting on his lower back. His heartbeat speeds up, so much so that he’s probably at risk of a heart attack, and Lando desperately tries to think of ways to move off of Carlos without waking him up. 

Unfortunately, because Lando seems to have no luck, Carlos’ eyes flutter open in the middle of Lando’s panic attack. 

“You are heavy, cabrón.” Carlos mumbles sleepily, turning so that their noses are practically touching, which _ really _ isn’t helping Lando’s heart rate at all. “What is the time?”

Lando uses this as a good enough excuse to move off of Carlos and reach for his phone.

“Half eight almost,” Lando tells him. “I think breakfast starts at nine, the wedding isn’t until two, so we’ve got plenty of time.”

Carlos groans. “Five more minutes and then we get up.”

Lando rolls his eyes, but relents.

Only a few people are in the dining hall for breakfast when Lando and Carlos arrive, Carlos pushing him into a chair and going off to get them breakfast. It’s only then that Dom wanders over, looking a little lost without Jessie at his side, but happy nonetheless.

“Hey there little cuz,” Dom grins, sliding into the seat next to him. “Haven’t had a chance to catch up yet. How’s things?”

Lando shrugs, smiling back. “I mean, I’m not getting married to the love of my life, but things are going alright.”

Dom raises an eyebrow.

“You might be getting married sooner than you think, I hear your boyfriend has even managed to make a good impression with grandma.” Dom nudges him in the side. “Never thought I’d see the day you’d bring someone home who would impress the old battleaxe.”

“Dom!” Lando nearly chokes on a laugh. “Don’t be rude about grandma.”

A plate of what is essentially a full english breakfast suddenly appears in front of him and Lando turns to find Carlos placing another down on his own place mat. 

“I got you everything but mushrooms,” Carlos smiles, leaning over and pressing a kiss to the side of Lando’s head. “If you do not want the tomato, I will have it.”

Lando feels himself go a bit pink.

“You must be Carlos,” Dom says before Lando’s brain recovers. “It’s nice to meet you, mate, I’m Dom.”

Carlos shakes his hand. “The lucky groom, yes?”

“I don’t know about lucky,” Dom laughs. “I’m kidding, yeah, that’s me. Speaking of, Jess will be down in ten and I still need to eat before I go. I’ll leave you to it, lads. Catch you later, hopefully.”

As Dom wanders back towards his groomsmen, Lando turns to look at Carlos.

“How do you know I don’t like mushrooms?” Lando frowns.

“You told me,” Carlos says, looking a bit confused. “I cooked you paella with mushrooms and you picked them all out.”

Lando blinks with surprise. He doesn’t really remember that, probably because he and Carlos have hung out so many times that some of the occasions have blurred into one, but the fact that Carlos does is oddly touching.

“Thanks,” Lando says quietly, patting Carlos on the knee. “You’re a legend.”

“I know.”

Lando kicks him under the table.

They go back up to their room and lounge around for a bit, watching old episodes of Bargain Hunt, most of which Lando has to explain to Carlos. It’s only when his mum texts him telling him pretty firmly that they best start getting ready that both of them unpack their formal shirts and trousers, Dom having insisted on the day not being overly formal.

Lando finally manages to text George and Alex in their group chat (rather appropriately called _ Dumb, Dumber and Dumbest _ \- the debate is still up on who _ dumbest _ is, but unfotunately Lando has a feeling it’s probably him) when Carlos bags the first shower.

_ I am going to die x _

George, of course, is unsympathetic.

_ U can’t die from an erection, stop being dramatic x _

Lando hates him, so, so much.

_ My family all love Carlos, i can never bring another man home again x _

Alex once again proves he is a true friend.

_ We will help when u come back, don’t stress! X _

Alas, at that moment, stress is the only emotion Lando can feel as Carlos steps out of the en-suite with nothing but a towel on, water dripping down his chest and hair slicked back like something out of a chick flick.

“I have left you a towel.” Carlos says, as though Lando isn’t about to combust in front of him. “Is on the radiator.”

Lando, the coward that he is, flees to the bathroom. 

He contemplates drowning himself in the shower, but in the end he decides he might as well go out and get this over with. After today, he can go back to uni and he and Carlos can go back to being just friends and Lando will just have to avoid any family event for the rest of time.

Carlos, of course, pulls off his shirt and trousers much better than Lando, who feels quite out of place in them. He fiddles nervously with his collar until Carlos comes over and gently moves his hands aside.

“Let me do it,” Carlos tells him. “Stop worrying, will all be okay.”

“I look stupid.” Lando moans, frowning at his reflection in the mirror on the wardrobe. “I feel stupid too.”

Carlos rolls his eyes. “In a few hours, will all be over, everyone will be drunk and no one will care what you look like.” He straightens Lando’s collar, smoothing the fabric down. “And I tell you a secret, you look very handsome. The only stupid thing is that you do no see it.”

Lando tries not to let himself blush at that, but his cheeks don’t cooperate.

+

They’re sat fairly close to the front at the wedding, wedged in between Lando’s parents and one of his aunts. Dom is stood at the front with his brother James, who’s also his best man, looking a bit nervous now, but he’s hiding it well.

“He looks better than I would.” Lando tells Carlos quietly. “I think I would be shitting myself.”

Carlos laughs. “Does marriage scare you so much?”

“I mean, sort of.” Lando admits, shrugging. “Your whole life is a big commitment, you know?”

Carlos doesn’t reply for a moment, so Lando turns to look at him and finds the Spaniard watching him with an unreadable expression on his face. 

“I think when you love someone, you will no feel afraid of that kind of thing anymore.” Carlos says finally, turning to look at where Dom is now rubbing his palms together. “You do not need to be worried because you are doing it together, like a team.”

The words _ like us right now _ are unspoken, but Lando hears them loud and clear, and without thinking about it, he reaches out and takes Carlos’ hand just as the music that announces the bride’s arrival begins. 

The wedding itself is sweet, Dom and Jessie both cry and laugh and the minister is fairly entertaining rather than serious in the way Lando has seen at weddings before. Their vows are typical Norris style, a little bit funny and ending on a romantic note and Lando has to blink away the tears in his own eyes, Carlos squeezing his hand as he does.

They carry on holding hands even as they cheer for the new bride and groom as they make their way out of the chapel, confetti being thrown in the air and everyone looking radiantly happy in only the way something like a wedding can make people feel.

“You still afraid?” Carlos asks him as they walk through the grounds towards the reception, arms swinging in between them. Lando’s mum gives them a fond look over her shoulder as she chats with his uncle. “Did that seem so scary?”

Lando looks down at their entwined hands, thinks of how happy Dom and Jessie had looked when the classic “you may now kiss the bride” line was said.

“No, I guess not.”

+

Lando is absolutely, unequivocally, _ drunk _. 

It starts with the free bar and his brother daring him to do three shots and ends up with both of them wobbling around like baby deer, clutching on to various family members and surfaces in order to stay upright. 

Amazingly, in spite of his drunkenness, Lando manages to spot Carlos talking with his father across the room and stumbles over there, wrapping his arms around Carlos’ waist and leaning his head on his shoulder blade.

“Cabrón, I was wondering where you were.” Carlos smiles, turning to look at Lando. “Are you okay?”

Lando giggles. “No, you haven’t danced with me.”

Carlos raises an eyebrow at him, his dad doing the same.

“How much have you had to drink?” His dad asks. 

Lando blows a raspberry at him. “Only a little bit. It’s Oli’s fault, anyway, he bought the shots in the first place.”

His dad looks unamused, but Lando doesn’t care. He turns to Carlos again and pouts as best he can, widening his eyes. Carlos looks very beautiful in this light, but then again, Carlos looks very beautiful all the time.

“You said you would dance with me.” He says, moving his hands to grip at Carlos’ wrists. “Dance, now.”

“I do no remember agreeing to this.” Carlos frowns, but Lando is tugging him towards the dance floor now and the Spaniard doesn’t have a choice but to go with him else Lando is going to end up flat on his face.

“You heard the man,” Adam says, giving Carlos a little push. “He wants a dance.”

Their “dance” ends up being mostly Lando trying to keep himself upright whilst using Carlos as something to keep his legs from giving out. They sway in uncoordinated circles very much out of time with the music and Lando can’t stop giggling, but it’s nice. Carlos ends up joining in his laughter and in the end they’re just being stupid together and enjoying themselves.

“You smell like alcohol.” Carlos tells him, Lando leaning upwards to wrap his arms around Carlos’ neck, Carlos resting his hands at Lando’s hips. 

“Does this mean you don’t want to kiss me?” Lando asks, fluttering his eyelashes in a way that probably makes him look like an idiot.

Carlos has that unreadable expression on his face again and Lando hates it. He always tells Carlos everything that he’s feeling, other than his desire to give him a good snog.

“Maybe later.” Carlos winks, but his smile doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “I think is time for bed for you, cabrón. You have had a lot to drink.”

Carlos has to half carry Lando upstairs to their room, Lando managing to stumble every few steps and nearly headbutting a stair rail as they go. By the time they get to the room, Carlos looks rather disheveled, his hair a mess and Lando can’t help but to reach up and run a hand through it.

“You have nice hair.”

Carlos struggles to carry him over the threshold. “If you keep pulling like that, I will no have any.”

“Oops!” Lando almost trips onto the bed. “Sorry.”

He feels his eyes begin to droop; the bed is very comfortable and he could probably fall asleep like this.

“Lando,” Carlos shakes his shoulder gently. “You can no fall asleep in your clothes, you need to get changed.”

Lando manages to stand up, still a bit shaky, and turns to Carlos.

“You could take them off for me.” He slurs, seductive tone not quite coming across the way he wants it to. 

Carlos sighs in a long suffering sort of way. “You’re a big boy, you can take them off yourself.”

Lando, however, takes a few steps forward and wraps his arms around Carlos’ neck like when they were dancing, leaning in so that he can see every freckle on Carlos’ nose.

“Is it later yet?” Lando asks quietly, feeling as though he should whisper for some reason. 

“What do you mean?” Carlos frowns, looking down at him with dark eyes. They’re like beautiful chocolate pools and Lando could happily drown in them. 

“You said you would kiss me later.” Lando reminds him. 

“You have had a lot to drink, Lando, I do no think that we should-”

Lando rises up on his tiptoes and kisses him. Carlos tastes like beer and a hint of wedding cake and Lando can do nothing but fist a hand into his hair and pull him closer. Carlos is still for a moment before he kisses back, biting softly at Lando’s lower lip, Lando moaning into his mouth as he does.

Carlos brings his hands up and cups Lando’s jaw, very much like the first time they kissed in the car, and gently pulls back. Lando makes a noise of displeasure at this, but Carlos holds firm.

“You have drunk a lot.” Carlos says. “I think you should sleep now and tomorrow we talk, okay?”

Lando really wants to keep on kissing, but his eyelids feel heavy and it’s suddenly like the whole day has caught up with him because he feels absolutely exhausted. He lets Carlos guide him over to the bed and strips himself down to his boxers before climbing under the covers.

He rolls over so that his face is tucked into the curve of Carlos’ neck and throws an arm over his chest.

“Thank you for this weekend.” Lando’s voice is muffled against this skin of Carlos’ collarbone. “You’re the best fake boyfriend ever.”

Carlos doesn’t reply, but the last thing Lando feels before he succumbs to sleep is a kiss being lightly pressed to his forehead.

+

Of course, come morning, Lando is not so relaxed about the events of the night before.

He leaves Carlos asleep in bed and goes down to breakfast by himself to try and get of all the panic he’s currently feeling under control, along with desperately needing some water to cure the way his head is pounding.

“My sunshine,” His mum greets him with a knowing expression. “You look very hungover.”

Lando is.

“I’m sorry, mum.” He says miserably. “I don’t mean to embarrass you.”

Cisca pats the seat next to her and Lando obediently sits. She brushes his hair off his forehead, frowning.

“You never embarrass me, my angel, I just worry about you is all. Is Carlos driving you both home?” She asks and Lando nods. “Good, I think you could do with a rest. You can sleep on the journey home, can’t you?”

“Yeah, I will.”

When he goes back up to his room with a plate of food for Carlos, not having been able to stomach anything himself, he finds Carlos awake and changed, looking a bit awkward.

“Buenos días,” Carlos greets him, giving him a small smile. “Did you sleep okay?”

Lando nods, biting his lip. “Yeah, I mean, I’ve got one hell of a hangover, but I’ll live.”

There’s a moment of very uncomfortable silence in which Lando can literally feel the tension in the room. He decides to bite the bullet and spare himself from any further humiliation later on.

“Um, about last night.” Lando starts, Carlos looking up with a wary expression. “I was totally fucked, I barely remember any of it. I’m really sorry if I did anything embarrassing.”

Carlos nods slowly. “You no remember anything?”

“No,” Lando lies, because if he pretends he doesn’t remember, Carlos won’t have to let him down gently the way he undoubtedly would want to in order not to hurt Lando’s feelings. “The last thing I remember is being on the dance floor.”

Carlos continues to frown at him, but says nothing more, so Lando doesn’t either.

They leave around lunchtime, Lando’s mum becoming teary eyed as they go to leave and his dad rolling his eyes at her.

“I’ll see you soon, mum,” Lando tells her. “Promise.”

His mum wipes away her tears. “I know you will, you just seem so far away sometimes.”

She turns to Carlos, who had been quiet up until that point.

“You will look after him, won’t you, Carlos?” She asks, taking his hands in her own and looking imploringly at him. “He’s terrible at looking after himself sometimes, I do worry.”

Carlos smiles at her. “Señora, you have my word. I will get him back to you in once piece.”

Lando follows his mum's orders, both out of need but also cowardice, and sleeps the majority of the journey home. He wakes up about half an hour away from London, but keeps his eyes closed to try and avoid any sort of conversation that could lead back to the events of last night.

When they arrive outside of Lando’s apartment building, there’s a few seconds when Lando doesn’t know what to do or say and he absolutely hates it. He’s never felt like this with Carlos before.

“I will see you later, then?” Carlos asks uncertainly.

Lando nods. “Of course. And, um, thanks again for this weekend. I really appreciate it.”

“Is not problem.” Carlos pats him on the arm. The point at which their skin meets burns Lando. “Anytime.”

They say an unusually polite goodbye before Lando flees into the safety of his apartment building, not stopping until he reaches the door to his flat. Inside he finds George and Alex playing a furious game of Fifa, both of them looking up as he enters.

“Lando!” George cheers. “You’re back! How was the romantic weekend away?”

“Fuck off.” Lando snaps, because if he doesn’t snap, he’s going to cry. “Just, leave it George, alright?”

He ignores his friends calling after him and stalks into his room, slamming the door shut like the moody teenager he feels inside and flops face first down onto the bed. God, he’s such an _ idiot _.

How could he have let himself get that drunk around Carlos?

They could never go back to being friends like they were again, not now that Lando knows what it feels like to kiss him, hold his hand, share his bed. No, Lando knows that this is game over now. He can’t pretend anymore.

He crawls into the shower, finally letting go and just sobbing pretty pathetically against the tiles while the hot water cascades down his back. It feels as though his whole world is about to change, and Lando supposes it is, because he’s just managed to lose his best friend.

Lando ends up so lost in his thoughts that he jumps at the sound of a quiet knock on the door.

“Lando?” Alex’s voice is soft. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m alright.” Lando lies. “Why?”

“Because you’ve been in there for like an hour now.”

Oh. That would explain why the skin of his fingers is wrinkling and the water has started to run cold. 

He comes out of the shower and wraps himself up in the biggest, fluffiest towel that they have and gets into a pair of sweats and a ratty old shirt that he stole from Carlos months ago. When he comes back out into the living room, George and Alex are waiting with a pack of Jaffa Cakes and a glass of milk.

“Oh, _ Lando _,” Alex says quietly. “Come here.”

They end up in a big cuddle pile, Lando in the middle of his two friends all warm and snug. George pulls the furry blanket that he normally hoards in his room up over the three of them and Lando just snuggles into them both.

“What happened?” George asks, stroking his hair. “Did you embarrass yourself?”

Lando nods. “I kissed Carlos.”

“You were pretending to be dating him.” Alex says fairly. “I would’ve been more surprised if you hadn’t kissed him.”

“No,” Lando moans, shaking his head. “I got really drunk and then when we went back to our room, I told him he could help me take my clothes off and kissed him.”

It’s a sign of how close they are that neither George nor Alex laugh, although Lando can see George biting his lip hard out of the corner of his eye.

“Buddy, you are a complete mess aren’t you?”

Lando steals a Jaffa Cake.

“Maybe I’ll just throw myself off of the apartment roof.” He grumbles. “Then I don’t have to worry about Carlos not wanting to be friends with me anymore or that my parents will disown me for dating someone else.”

“He said he didn’t want to be friends anymore?” Alex frowns. 

Lando shakes his head. “No, but why would he? I practically asked him to strip me and then threw myself at him. Would you want to be friends with me still if I did that to one of you?”

George hums contemplatively. “I dunno. I mean, I could understand why you would do that to me, I’m bloody handsome.”

Alex laughs and even Lando manages a smile. He tightens his grip around Alex’s waist and leans back into George’s hold. He feels like maybe this whole day isn’t such a disaster after all.

+

Lando avoids Carlos for two weeks after the wedding and Carlos seems to follow his lead after Lando ignores a few of his texts and doesn’t bother trying to send anything more. Lando misses him terribly, and as much as George and Alex try, he can’t quite enjoy Fifa and chinese takeaway as much with them as he does with Carlos.

It’s a Friday afternoon and Lando is in the library trying to go over some overly complicated seminar work that Rosberg has set them when Max finds him. He has a frown on his face which Lando doesn’t like at all.

“What did you do to Carlos?” Max asks without preamble. “He’s been miserable for weeks.”

Lando swallows. “I fucked up, okay?”

Max sits down opposite him, crossing his arms and looking rather intimidating for someone that is usually one of Lando’s best friends.

“What did you do?” Max repeats. “I keep asking him and he said that it was his fault, but he wouldn’t tell me why or what happened.”

“I got really drunk at the wedding and then when we were alone, I kissed him.” Lando leaves out the bit about asking Carlos to take his clothes off. “And now I don’t know if I can look him in the face because I really like Carlos and now he knows and I feel like a complete idiot.”

Max stares at him for an uncomfortable moment in which Lando has no idea what he’s thinking.

“Look,” Max leans over the table. “If you had asked me to go to this wedding with you, I would have said no. Does the fact that Carlos agreed to pretend to be your _ boyfriend _not tell you something?”

Lando frowns. “What do you mean you wouldn’t have gone with me?”

“Come on, who the hell would have believed us if we said we were dating?” Max rolls his eyes.

Now Lando thinks about it, probably no one in his family would have believed he was dating Max, and the fact they all just accepted the fact he was “dating” Carlos seems a lot more significant than Lando previously realised.

“Fuck,” Lando says. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

Max snorts. “No thanks, I’ve got a girlfriend.”

“Shut up.” Lando swats at his arm. “You know what I mean.”

God, he’s been a complete idiot. He needs to see Carlos and sort this mess out.

“It’ll be alright, you know?” Max says consolingly. “You know Carlos could never be mad with you, he’s not that kind of guy. Just talk to him and I’m sure you two can sort this out, which is what you should have done rather than waiting until after you took him as your pretend boyfriend to meet your family, by the way.”

Lando pokes his tongue out at him, a mature move all round.

“You know I’m right.” Max grins. “Now, hand over the seminar work. I haven’t even looked at it yet.”

Lando stares at him. “Our seminar is in an _ hour _.”

“Eh,” Max shrugs. “It’s just a seminar. If you promise to sort your shit with Carlos out, I’ll give you a copy of the answers.”

“Deal.”

+

Lando goes to Carlos’ apartment on Saturday morning, feeling more nervous than he can remember being in his life. He practices what he’s going to say in the lift up to Carlos’ floor, taking a deep breath before stepping out of the doors.

Carlos answers the door in some sweatpants and a shirt, looking as though he’s just crawled out of bed. He gives Lando a cautious look when he realises who it is and offers a smile.

“Alright, cabrón?” He yawns. “Sorry, I was in bed.”

Lando braces himself for rejection before speaking. “Can I come in?”

“Sure,” Carlos holds the door open for him. “Let me just get changed a moment.”

Lando waits in the living room, jiggling his knee furiously as he does. Carlos emerges from his bedroom after a moment wearing jeans and a nicer shirt than before, his hair less bedhead now. He sits on the sofa next to Lando, but leaves a much larger gap in between them than usual, and Lando feels his nerves amplify.

“So,” Lando starts awkwardly as ever. “I, um, wanted to talk to you.”

Carlos nods. “Okay.”

“I just wanted to say that I’m really sorry about everything that happened.” Lando says quickly. He reminds himself of the last time he was here asking Carlos to pretend to be his boyfriend; _ like ripping off a plaster _. “I should never have asked you to pretend to be my boyfriend, it was really stupid. And I’m sorry for everything I did when I was drunk.”

“You remember?” Carlos asks, blinking. 

“Yeah, I just, I didn’t want you to hate me so I told you I forgot.” Lando can’t look him in the face anymore. “I lied too, when I asked you to the wedding. My mum thought we were dating because I talk about you all the time so I just agreed, but everyone we know knows that I like you. Fuck, I shouldn’t have asked you.”

Lando focuses on a vase of flowers in the corner of the room while he waits for Carlos to respond. When after a few seconds of silence he hasn’t, Lando turns to face him.

Carlos looks stunned.

“You like me?” He asks, staring at him. “Why did you no say anything?”

It’s Lando’s turn to stare now.

“We’re friends, best friends.” Lando says, because surely this is obvious. “You’re like way out of my league and you’ve never shown any interest in me. I’m not completely stupid, I knew it would fuck everything up.”

“Lando, I agree to go to your family wedding as your _ boyfriend _.” Carlos says slowly. “Would I do that if I have no interest in you?”

Maybe Lando is completely stupid after all.

“You never said anything.” Lando says indignantly. “How was I supposed to know?”

“You never say anything either.” Carlos frowns. “I was no going to tell you that I have feelings for you when I was unsure how you felt.”

They sit there staring at one another for a second before they burst out laughing. God, they’re _ both _ completely stupid. Why the hell had they not talked about this sooner? It would have saved Lando the world of anxiety.

When they finally calm down, Lando turns to look at Carlos.

“So, um, what do we do now?”

Carlos rolls his eyes, grabs at Lando’s hand and pulls him into his lap.

“Now, I ask you to be my boyfriend for real this time.” Carlos says, kissing him chastely, smirking when Lando chases after his mouth as he pulls away. “And once you say yes, maybe I take you up on your offer of helping you take your clothes off.”

“Yes,” Lando says immediately, because he would very much like Carlos to help take his clothes off. “Yes, I’ll be your boyfriend.”

Carlos grins. “That is what I like to hear.”

Carlos carries him into his bedroom, stopping occasionally to push him up against the wall and kiss him senseless, before dropping him down onto the bed and crawling on top of him.

“Si?” Carlos asks, pushing at the hem of his shirt.

Lando nods. “Si, all the si’s.”

“That makes no sense, cabrón.”Carlos laughs, but he pulls of Lando’s shirt all the same. He leans down and bites at Lando’s nipple, Lando jerking his hips up as he does. “Is good?”

“You either have to fuck me right now or I’m going to come in my jeans.” Lando tells him, because he’s had a boner for Carlos since forever and now they’ve got here, he can’t really afford to enjoy this foreplay. “Seriously, Carlos, I might actually die.”

He’s only 20, he’s allowed to be dramatic.

“Is no time to waste then,” Carlos says, pulling off his own jeans and boxers, before dealing with Lando’s. He opens Lando up with clever fingers that have Lando clutching his sheets until his knuckles go white and trying not to shout every time Carlos twists his wrist.

“Carlos,” he whines, desperate now. “Come on.”

Carlos kisses his hip. “As you wish, cabrón.”

Lando doesn’t bother to respond to that; he’s too turned on to think of any words other than “Carlos” and “Please."

Carlos is gentle to begin with, pushing into him slowly, Lando’s hips jerking up as Carlos’s cock brushes up against his prostate. He kisses Lando, licking into his mouth and sucking idly at his tongue until Lando digs his fingers into Carlos’s shoulder blades and whispers “move, please” into his ear.

The sex is passionate, desperate and everything that Lando hoped it would be, Carlos thrusting into him without holding back. Carlos spews a litany of curses and Spanish into his ear, both of which have Lando feeling so turned on that he’s surprised he lasts as long as he does, especially when Carlos manages to hit that spot inside of him that has his vision whiting out.

He reaches down and wraps his fingers around Lando’s cock, jerking him off in time to his thrusts. Lando arches his back, pleasure pooling at every nerve in his body and making him cry out so loudly that he’s surprised Carlos’ neighbours haven’t started banging on their walls.

“Te quieres venir?” Carlos licks at the shell of his ear before biting down and Lando whimpers, nodding blindly, not a clue what’s being said but he’s willing to say yes to anything right now. “_Joder_. Adelante, hazlo.”

Lando comes over Carlos’s fist with a shout, and he thinks he hears the covers tear as he clenches his fists in them, but he can’t bring himself to care right now. Carlos thrusts rather erratically into him a few more times before he hisses out a “oh dios mio” and his hips still.

They lay there for a moment, trying to catch up on their breathing, before Carlos gently pulls out of him, and throws the condom in the bin in the corner of the room. His hair is wild now where Lando’s hands has run through it and there are bruises forming on his chest where Lando’s mouth has been.

“Well,” Carlos pants. “We could have done that a lot sooner if you were not so stupid.”

Lando hits his arm. “Oi, I’m not the only one who’s stupid here.”

“I agree to be your pretend boyfriend, surely is obvious I like you!”

They bicker back and forth for a bit before deciding to go and shower, Carlos dragging him into the shower with him, most of which is spent with them making out until the water goes cold and they end up curled up in bed with one another again. Carlos strokes a hand through his curls, Lando pushing up into his hand.

“You are like a cat.” Carlos tells him, but doesn’t stop. 

Lando is almost asleep when Carlos speaks again, this time the words are muffled where Carlos’s face his pressed into his own, Lando feeling him talk more than hearing him.

“We are boyfriends now, aren’t we?” Carlos asks quietly. “You want that?”

Lando tightens his arms around Carlos. “Yeah. Do you?”

Carlos kisses the crown of his head. “For sure. I want to hold your hand all the time.”

Lando feels his heart flutter at the words and has to prevent himself from making an embarrassing noise. Carlos drifts off before Lando, and Lando realises he hasn’t updated his flatmates in several hours on his whereabouts. 

_ Boyfriend achieved! x _

Alex sends back about 50 various celebration emoji’s so quickly that Lando is sure he must have been waiting by his phone with them already typed out.

_ Oh god, you two are going to have sex in our apartment all the time now, aren’t you? _

Lando grins.

_ Yup ;) x _

+

_ Six Months Later _

“My sister is very excited to meet you.” Carlos tells him. Lando can’t quite feel the same excitement. He’s never met anyone’s parents before, least of all in some fancy restaurant that he couldn’t afford in a million years. “And my mama, well, she is a bit like yours.”

Lando is now terrified.

“Do no look so scared.” Carlos assures him, kissing Lando softly. “You have met my papa and he loves you, he thinks you are very funny.”

“Good funny or funny weird?” Lando asks, because he’s been called both over the years.

“Good funny,” Carlos promises. “Although maybe if he gets to know you he may think funny weird instead.”

“Asshole,” Lando says, hitting him on the knee. “You’re just as weird as I am.”

Carlos doesn’t have time to argue, because at that moment his father, followed by a beautiful looking lady with dark hair and eyes that must be his mother and an equally beautiful younger woman who Lando assumes is his sister given that she is basically the female version of Carlos enter the restaurant.

Lando follows Carlos’ lead and stands up.

“Mama, Papa,” Carlos greets them with a hug and kiss on the cheek. He turns towards Lando. “This is Lando, mama.”

“It’s so nice to meet you, ma’am.” Lando says in a slightly higher pitched voice than usual. 

“Oh, you are an angel.” Carlos’ mother presses a kiss to each cheek and Lando blushes. Her accent is stronger than Carlos’, probably due to living in Spain. “You must call me Reyes, I insist.”

Carlos Sainz Sr shakes Lando’s hand with a smile. “Lando, is good to see you again. You have been keeping well, I hope.”

“I try my best, sir.”

There’s a little cough from beside them and Lando turns to find Carlos’ sister looking at him with an expectant expression.

“Lando, this is Ana, my sister.” Carlos gestures at her. “Ana, play nice.”

Ana flutters her eyelashes. “Of course, hermano.” She looks at Lando again. “I have been _dying_ to have someone to tell his embarrassing stories to for years now. Come, sit with me.”

Carlos groans as Ana drags him away to sit with her.

She reminds Lando rather irresistibly of his own brother trying to humiliate him, but Carlos was happy enough to go off with Oli and his dad and laugh at Lando, so Lando considers this fair game.

The meal itself is delicious, and Carlos’ family are just as kind and welcoming as Carlos himself, his parents asking Lando about his degree and Ana whispering stories about Carlos from childhood throughout the meal. By the time the evening is over, Lando is almost sorry it has to end. 

“See, was no so scary.” Carlos wraps an arm around Lando’s shoulders as they walk back to the car. “My parents love you and so does my sister. I knew they would.”

Lando presses a kiss to his cheek. “It must be a Sainz thing, to love me.”

Carlos is quiet for a moment before he speaks again. “Yes, I suppose it must be. You know that I love you, right?”

Lando nearly trips over his own feet at the confession.

“Oh, um, cool.” Lando says thoughtlessly. Carlos raises an eyebrow. “I mean, I love you too, obviously.”

“Obviously.” Carlos grins, looking relieved. He looks ahead of them at something before turning back to Lando. “Race you to the car?”

“You’re on, old man.”

Carlos beats him, but he keeps his hand on Lando’s own over the gearstick the whole way home, so Lando considers it a win in the end. They end up back at what is now mostly their apartment, Lando’s stuff littered amongst Carlos’ own.

“If you love me, does that mean we get to make love now?” Lando asks as he forces Carlos to give him a piggyback to bed. “Although, is making love even different to sex or is it the same?”

“I dunno. I think we should test that theory so we can find out.” Carlos says, dropping him down on the bed. “For science and everything. Your lecturers will approve of you following regulations.”

Lando kisses him firmly. 

“Let’s get testing, shall we?”

_ end _

**Author's Note:**

> thank u all for reading, i hope you enjoyed. if there is any mistakes, both english or spanish, let me know. i've been ill while writing this due to getting a train and then getting a bug from that lmao so there may be errors due to tiredness and i am very happy to be corrected.
> 
> love jazz xx


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